We must keep supporting those with disabilities

As a member of a group of concerned family members that make up A-Team DE, I want to draw attention to the urgent needs of our loved ones with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). The passing of the McNesby Act is a beginning to address a much-needed shortfall to redress the funding for the Direct Support Professionals (DSPs).

The legislative commitment to keep that in place for the future has been a hard fought battle that finally got the attention of our state government, for which we are grateful. However, over 3,000 adults with IDD in the state are presently living at home and being taken care of by aging parents, 60 and older. The well being of these individuals is at serious risk unless money is allocated to deal with providing them the services they will need in the not too distant future.

We urge Gov. Carney and the newly elected legislature to keep the needs of this very vulnerable population in mind. The reputation of a society rests on the care it provides for those that are the weakest among them.

--Niloufer Vevai, Newark

Save money by releasing non-violent offenders

The state is spending $30 million of our tax dollars to make the prison in Smyrna safer following the siege on Feb. 1, 2017, by transferring 330 inmates to a prison in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania, for two years paying the State of Pennsylvania $30 million.

They say it will save Dept. of Corrections $30 million a year in overtime pay. How about this idea – I know for a fact, and so do the families of many of the incarcerated, that there are at the very minimum at least 1,000 non-violent inmates that could be released and returned to their families at a savings of $100 million a year.

Prison reform is here but our governor has chosen to follow the same trajectory of his predecessors by following the status quo. Why is it so hard for the public to understand that many of those incarcerated are people just like us who made bad decisions in life and deserve a second chance?

--Anthony Stella, Wilmington

Remember the fundamentals of the GOP?

Much has been written about the “demise” of the GOP in Delaware. With no experience to draw from, I can’t very well say what the state GOP should do come 2020 in terms of volunteers, funding and campaigning.

However, what concerns me most as a conservative first and a Republican second, is the talk of finding moderate candidates to better appeal to Democrats and Independents. But a better strategy would seem to be to return to fundamentals.

What exactly are conservatives trying to conserve? As one cultural commentator puts it, we are trying to conserve, “certain institutions, patterns, ethical principles, and habits that are necessary to the continuation of society.” The good fruit of human flourishing (family stability, better wages, jobs, access to healthcare, etc.) will come when the roots of principles such as subsidiarity, community and capital “L” Liberalism among others are firmly planted. It is not enough to say we want better jobs and wages.

Everyone wants that. The foundational question is why? Because we conservatives want everyone, black and brown, gay and straight, millennial and boomer, Democrat and Republican to flourish. Of course, we are not going to agree with everyone on the details, but I think that is still a message that can reach across neighborhoods and aisles.